Why Do People Start a Business?

A survey from a pool of Columbia Business Schoolalumni entrepreneurs was recently conducted to understand the overall pattern of our graduates' entrepreneurial experiences and what factors predict success. One of the questions posed was: Why did you start a business?

The results showed the various reasons people first became entrepreneurs and how these motivations are linked to success. Interestingly, one of the least cited reasons is the only one that is linked to success.